When war threatens the comfortable life of Joan and Emma Lew, the daughters of a Hong Kong businessman, they escape with their family to spend the early 1940s in Macao. When they return home, Joan, the beautiful elder sister, hopes for a traditional marriage and children, until her passion for movies and romance gives her the promise of a different life. Emma, inspired by the independence of her aunt Go, considers college in San Francisco and the challenge of life in America. As the girls become women, each follows a path different from what her family expects. But through times of great happiness and sorrow, the sisters learn that their complicated ties to each other - and to the other members of their close-knit family - are a source of strength as they pursue their separate dreams.

Publisher Comments

As World War II threatens their comfortable life in Hong Kong, young Joan and Emma Lew escape with their family to spend the war years in Macao. When they return home, Emma develops a deep interest in travel and sets her sights on an artistic life in San Francisco, while Joan turns to movies and thoughts of romance to escape the pressures of her real life. As the girls become women, each follows a path different from what her family expects. But through periods of great happiness and sorrow, the sisters learn that their complicated ties to each other -- and to the other members of their close-knit family -- are a source of strength as they pursue their separate dreams.